Cambridge, MA.... Grammy-nominated composer, singer and musicologist Linda Tillery and the all-women a cappella ensemble, Cultural Heritage Choir performs a program of African-American roots music at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Kresge Auditorium (48 Massachusetts Ave.) on Sunday, Oct. 21 at 3 p.m. From slave songs and field hollers to modern jazz, Tillery taps the diverse resources of African-American music in a program designed for listeners of all ages.

Long regarded as one of the San Francisco Bay Area's most versatile singers, Tillery's powerful and flexible alto has been a key element in groups ranging from Bobby McFerrin's sublime Voicestra to the notorious Zazu Pitts Memorial Orchestra. With a voice that critics have compared to those of Mahalia Jackson and Aretha Franklin, she weaves myriad threads and cultural traditions into a single fabric.

"All the music I love and have ever sung is connected," explains the San Francisco native. "All of it can be tied together by following the migration pattern of any African-American family that started in the South and moved northward to places like Chicago and New York and had their lives shaped and dominated by certain elements -- slavery, religion and survival."

Tickets are available only at door: $15, $5 for MIT students, free for 12 and under.

The Cultural Heritage Choir will also conduct workshops and classes with MIT students as part of their brief residency at the Institute.

Information: 617/253-4795.

Sponsored by the MIT President's Office; Associate Provost for the Arts; the Center for the Study of Diversity in Science, Technology and Medicine; Women's Studies Program; and the Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity & Diversity Program Office.

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